GYT Party: Using An Interactive Online Video to Promote STD Talking and Testing Among Youth

Background: There are an estimated 19 million new STD cases each year, half of which are among youth (ages 15-25years), who represent only one-quarter of the sexually active population. Misconceptions, stigma, and lack of information keep many people from getting tested and treated.

Program background: The GYT: Get Yourself Tested Campaign was launched in 2009, as a partnership effort of MTV, Kaiser Family Foundation, CDC and Planned Parenthood Federation of America. GYT aims to promote STD testing and normalize communications around STDs between sex partners, peers, and patients/providers. The campaign seeks to create an empowering social movement, working through multi-media platforms to engage youth and connect them with nearby testing centers. The campaign continuously seeks innovative ways to engage youth, destigmatize STDs/testing, and promote open dialogue around sexual health and STD testing.

Evaluation Methods and Results: The GYT campaign developed an interactive online video for sexually active youth, designed to promote STD testing and communication by normalizing STD testing, reducing perceived barriers to testing and disclosure, and modeling conversations about STD testing and disclosure between young people and their partners and friends. Video development was guided by consumer research and based on the Information, Motivation, Behavior Skills (IMB) Model. The video depicts a party scene with young people, in which viewers enter and interact with objects and people, watching conversations play out by scrolling over groups of people or objects ( ‘hot spots’) in the scene. Each conversation is designed to promote positive attitudes, perceived social support and/or self-efficacy for STD testing and communication.  The video directs viewers to additional information, talking tips, and a quiz to assess attitudes and beliefs towards STDs, testing and people who have STDs.  The video was promoted in April 2012 through the GYT campaign and its national media and public-health partners, as part of GYT’s push during STD Awareness Month. Audience reach and engagement with the GYT party and related content were tracked through web hits and amount of time spent on each page. Quiz responses were also tracked and will be reported.

Conclusions: This interactive video represents the first of its kind, offering a novel, interactive environment for youth that is engaging and addresses important and seldom-discussed topics of sexual health. This represents one of many innovative programs/activities that GYT has developed, in attempt to reduce STD-related stigma and normalize sexual health conversations.

Implications for research and/or practice: With today's available technologies and fast-changing social media environment, the field of public health must be constantly thinking of new ways to engage youth. Successes and challenges of the GYT party experience (identified through tracking and engagement data) can help inform practice, particulary as it relates to youth outreach for the promotion of sexual health.